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Embracing Failure

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1) The document discusses how embracing failure and risk-taking is important for creativity and innovation. It cites research showing that allowing mistakes and learning from them leads to better solutions over time. 2) It also discusses the work of Carol Dweck, who found that having a growth mindset, seeing abilities as something that can be developed rather than inherent, is important for achieving potential. Having this mindset is influenced by how one views failure. 3) For organizations to be truly innovative, they need an environment where people feel safe taking risks and failing, and where failures that lead to learning are accepted and even celebrated.

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Embracing Failure By Andrew tan Kids will take a chance. If stigmatize failure, and error- that survey it was found that the they dont know, they will have a eliminating programs that are number one hindrance towards gothey are not frightened of being introduced into having a more innovative being wrong. I dont mean to say multinational corperations such as organization was a risk-averse that being wrong is being creative. Six Sigma. Dont get me wrong, culture. But what we do know is that if Im not promoting total anarchy you are not prepared to be wrong, where the same failures are Logically it makes sense that you will never come up with repeated over and over again for the creation of anything new anything original. - Sir Ken without any consequences, or original there is always an Robinson. because in all things there needs element of risk involved, and with to be a balance. However, in this risk comes the chance for failure. This is just one of many day and age our culture is leaning This is all 鍖ne and well but is quotes out there on how fear of more towards one that is there any scienti鍖c evidence or failure and fear of risk-taking will governed by fear of trying and of are there any cold hard facts to totally squash creativity from an taking risk. Dont believe me? show that taking risk, making individual or an organization. Take a look at last years mistakes and learning from This risk-averse culture is now BusinessWeek and Boston mistakes have any effect on more prevalent than ever thanks Consulting Groups annual survey innovation and creativity? to educational systems that on innovation and creativity. In 1
Embracing Failure continued... By Andrew Tan The answer is yes. Professor Tom Ormerod from Lancaster University did one such study. In his In the end maybe what we all need to do is to research he found that people who are not only embrace Mark Twains quote: allowed to make mistakes but who actually make mistakes earlier on and learn from them, will Twenty years from now you will be more eventually come up with better and more creative disappointed by the things that you didn't do than by solutions to a problem. Consider further what Carol the ones you did do. So throw off the bowlines. Sail Dweck, a Stanford psychology professor, has to say away from the safe harbor. Catch the trade winds in about mindset and achieving ones true potential. your sails. Explore. Dream. Discover. According to her, the reasons some people achieve their true potential while equally talented people do not, isnt about ability. Instead it is about whether a person looks at ability as something inherent that needs to be demonstrated or as something external that can be developed. Dweck has shown that people with the latter belief are the people that achieve their true potential. Also according to her, how a person views ability is affected by a persons view of failure - whether a person views failure as an opportunity to learn and improve or views it as something that tarnishes ones image. So in an organization that only celebrates successes while failures are looked down upon and scorned at instead of being viewed as opportunities for learning, could potentially not be maximizing its employees potential. Therefore, for an organization or team that wishes to be truly innovative or creative, an environment where people feel safe to take risks and fail is a pre-requisite. An environment where it is acceptable to fail and learn from the failures is a must (repeating the previous fact?). In fact, having a safe environment might not be enough. It might need to go to the extent where failures that are followed by learnings are not only accepted but celebrated. 2

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Embracing Failure

  • 1. Embracing Failure By Andrew tan Kids will take a chance. If stigmatize failure, and error- that survey it was found that the they dont know, they will have a eliminating programs that are number one hindrance towards gothey are not frightened of being introduced into having a more innovative being wrong. I dont mean to say multinational corperations such as organization was a risk-averse that being wrong is being creative. Six Sigma. Dont get me wrong, culture. But what we do know is that if Im not promoting total anarchy you are not prepared to be wrong, where the same failures are Logically it makes sense that you will never come up with repeated over and over again for the creation of anything new anything original. - Sir Ken without any consequences, or original there is always an Robinson. because in all things there needs element of risk involved, and with to be a balance. However, in this risk comes the chance for failure. This is just one of many day and age our culture is leaning This is all 鍖ne and well but is quotes out there on how fear of more towards one that is there any scienti鍖c evidence or failure and fear of risk-taking will governed by fear of trying and of are there any cold hard facts to totally squash creativity from an taking risk. Dont believe me? show that taking risk, making individual or an organization. Take a look at last years mistakes and learning from This risk-averse culture is now BusinessWeek and Boston mistakes have any effect on more prevalent than ever thanks Consulting Groups annual survey innovation and creativity? to educational systems that on innovation and creativity. In 1
  • 2. Embracing Failure continued... By Andrew Tan The answer is yes. Professor Tom Ormerod from Lancaster University did one such study. In his In the end maybe what we all need to do is to research he found that people who are not only embrace Mark Twains quote: allowed to make mistakes but who actually make mistakes earlier on and learn from them, will Twenty years from now you will be more eventually come up with better and more creative disappointed by the things that you didn't do than by solutions to a problem. Consider further what Carol the ones you did do. So throw off the bowlines. Sail Dweck, a Stanford psychology professor, has to say away from the safe harbor. Catch the trade winds in about mindset and achieving ones true potential. your sails. Explore. Dream. Discover. According to her, the reasons some people achieve their true potential while equally talented people do not, isnt about ability. Instead it is about whether a person looks at ability as something inherent that needs to be demonstrated or as something external that can be developed. Dweck has shown that people with the latter belief are the people that achieve their true potential. Also according to her, how a person views ability is affected by a persons view of failure - whether a person views failure as an opportunity to learn and improve or views it as something that tarnishes ones image. So in an organization that only celebrates successes while failures are looked down upon and scorned at instead of being viewed as opportunities for learning, could potentially not be maximizing its employees potential. Therefore, for an organization or team that wishes to be truly innovative or creative, an environment where people feel safe to take risks and fail is a pre-requisite. An environment where it is acceptable to fail and learn from the failures is a must (repeating the previous fact?). In fact, having a safe environment might not be enough. It might need to go to the extent where failures that are followed by learnings are not only accepted but celebrated. 2